MENTAL HEALTH FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE FOR COLORADO MUSICIANS & INDUSTRY PROFESSIONALS

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. And The Hall is thrilled to be launching a financial assistance mini-grant program under our Keep The Beat mental wellness initiative to directly support musicians, music industry professionals and gig workers with mental health and addiction counseling. Eligible applicants must work in Colorado music and be uninsured or under-insured. Financial assistance awards up to $1,000 will fund counseling sessions from licensed mental health professionals.

Applications will be available on The Hall’s website next week. Spread the word!

If you or someone you know needs immediate help, call or text 988 for the mental health crisis line. For other free and low-cost resources, click link below.

LOCAL MUSICIAN, BRITT DEVENS, TALKS MENTAL HEALTH AND RECOVERY

By Bob Fontneau, Volunteer Social Media Manager for The Hall

Britt Devens is a sober, LGBTQ-friendly singer/song-writer and Fort-Collins native. “Devens uses her music to explore the vulnerabilities of her own experiences in life and to remind her audience of the importance of self-care” (www.brittdevens.com). As we bring attention to Mental Health Awareness Month in Colorado’s music community, this interview with Devens is both heartwarming and inspiring. Let’s all follow Britt’s lead in de-stigmatizing the conversation around mental health and addiction.

What mental health services were available to you as a young musician? 

Devens: Mental health services were not as widely available or talked about when I was growing up. And if they were, I was not aware of them.

What services do you wish had been available for you?

Devens: I wish that I would have been given tools such as mindfulness practices, breathing exercises, and therapy as a younger musician. If I would have known how effective those things were when I was in my teens I believe the trajectory of my life and career would have been much more different. I also don’t know that for sure, but I like to think that it wouldn’t have been so mentally exhausting thinking that because I had anxiety or that I was queer, I was so much different than my peers and that I needed to space those feelings or thought. Learning to sit with my thoughts and not attach emotions to each and every one of them has been incredibly liberating.

How might your career have been changed if such services had been available? 

Devens: I’m not sure but I imagine I would have possibly been able to deal with the uncomfortableness and anxiety of my sexual orientation without using substances. I am very grateful that the national conversation surrounding mental health has been sparked and I am hopeful that in the years to come it will be even more de-stigmatized and that it will one day be available and as important as physical health is for everyone.

What advice would you like to give a musician just starting out? 

Devens: Don’t be afraid to be authentic. And don’t be discouraged if you are told no. Music is a very subjective topic and not everyone has to resonate with your art. Let it be motivation to continue to be YOU! Connection is key and so is being uncomfortable.

DONATE TO SUPPORT MENTAL WELLNESS IN COLORADO’S MUSIC COMMUNITY

Please join us in celebrating Mental Health Awareness Month by making a tax-deductible donation today. Your help will allow us to provide financial assistance for counseling to even more Colorado musicians and industry professionals. The Hall is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that relies on public support through donations and events to fulfill our mission to celebrate, promote and support Colorado’s music community. Thank you in advance!

VETSTOCK, FEATURING HAZEL MILLER & THE COLLECTIVE

Bob Fontneau is The Hall’s devoted volunteer social media manager who helps share all of our news with you on a daily basis. Bob is also a volunteer who has put on and performs in a music festival, raising funds for the past four years to support vets with mental wellness through the Warrior Bonfire Program.

Bob has put together a two-day line-up of some amazing local music that this year includes Hazel Miller, a 2023 Colorado Music Hall of Famer! The music happens on Saturday, June 8 from 1 pm to 10 pm and on Sunday, June 9 from 1 pm to 9:30 pm at Modern Brew in Centennial. Free admission, but donations will be gladly accepted.

BRENT FEDRIZZI, HALL BOARD MEMBER, NAMED AEG PRESIDENT, NORTH AMERICAN REGIONAL OFFICES

A big congratulations to Colorado Music Hall of Fame board member, Brent Fedrizzi, who has been promoted within AEG Presents to North American Regional Offices President! All of us at The Hall are so proud of Brent and not at all surprised that he was offered this important role within the U.S. music industry.

From his start working for Hall of Famers, Barry Fey and Chuck Morris, Colorado-native Fedrizzi eventually succeeded Morris, alongside partner Don Strasburg, as co-president and COO of AEG Presents Rocky Mountains/Pacific Northwest for the past several years. It will be exciting to see how Brent’s dedication to our music culture and to making Colorado a music destination will now be magnified across North America. We are all lucky that Fedrizzi plans to remain in Colorado—and on our board, and as board chair for Visit Denver!

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